


Found and Lost

by Luminary_Oleander (SephyAthredon)



Category: Dragon Quest XI
Genre: He is very concerned, I had planned to make this a chronological series, M/M, Oleander is the name of the Luminary, Sylv being gentle and understanding, Temporary Amnesia, but I'm more motivated to write certain things than other things so I'm just not going to force it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-30
Updated: 2020-01-07
Packaged: 2021-02-27 12:09:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22036834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SephyAthredon/pseuds/Luminary_Oleander
Summary: Oleander finally finds Erik, but something's wrong. He gets upset over the fact that Erik can't remember him, and Sylvando decides to help.
Relationships: Camus | Erik/Hero | Luminary (Dragon Quest XI)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 36





	1. Chapter 1

When Sylvando had heard something scurrying below deck, Oleander certainly didn’t expect to find his long lost companion in a place where he expected nothing more than a few rats. Even with his hood on, Oleander recognized the green tunic and red sash anywhere. He was safe. He was alive.

“Erik!”

The man turned and looked at him. Bright blue eyes met his own as he stood, backing up with such force that his hood flew off, revealing spiky hair of the same color. The look on Erik’s face was one he’d hardly ever seen, a look of pure fear. He looked like he was expecting Oleander to shout, or to hit him for what he had done, when really it had just been a bit of food.

Oleander didn’t have a chance to say anything before Sylv arrived, the entire party in tow. He caught Oleander’s attention before speaking, “Is everything alright in here? I brought the whole gang just in ca-” He cut himself off mid sentence as he suddenly noticed who their little stowaway was, “Erik? Honey, is it really you?” He asked, and everyone seemed to turn to look at him at the same time, including Oleander.

Rab stepped forward, a look of relief clear on his face, “Yer alive, laddie! I knew ye would be! Och, this is the best news we’ve had in a while!” It was plain to see on everyone’s faces, that they were happy to have Erik back, even Hendrik gave a small smile. Oleander didn’t smile, he kept his eyes glued to Erik.

“You can say that again! It’s wonderful to have you back- isn’t it?” Sylvando asked. There were nods and sounds of agreement from the rest, but Erik just seemed to get more frightened the more they talked to him.

Suddenly, he fell to his knees, head bowed low and palms flat on the ground, “I... I… I’m sorry!” He stuttered out. The smiles disappeared from everyone’s faces, as they gasped in surprise. Still, he continued on, “I hadn’t eaten anything for three days, and I saw you loading this boat with food, and… and I just couldn’t help myself…”

A sharp pang of something resounded in the Luminary’s heart. To see the man he loved in such a sad state hurt him. What could have brought him this low? The Erik he knew wasn’t afraid of much, and he certainly wouldn’t act so pathetic.

“T-Three days…” Oleander said quietly, looking to the side, who knows how many times he’s nearly starved. People don’t much care to feed a thief.

“Umm… Are you okay, honey?” Sylvando asked, reaching out to Erik, perhaps to touch his shoulder in a comforting gesture.

Oleander was just about to answer Sylv by saying that the thief clearly wasn’t okay when Erik reeled back, almost as if he was trying to get as far away from Sylvando as he could. Once again, the fear was shown clearly in his eyes. After a moment, he moved back into the same position he was in before.

“Something is not right, is this really the same Erik you’ve been telling me about, your former companion?” Hendrik spoke, looking to Oleander. 

“It looks like it… I… I have no idea what could have happened to make him so… afraid…” He replied, keeping his voice low.

Erik suddenly locked eyes with Hendrik, “You… You said ‘Erik’, right? I, I’m pretty sure that’s my name, but… Do I… know you or something?”

Those words settled like a weight, right on Oleander’s chest. He doesn’t remember. 

“Don’t ye remember us, laddie? Yer auld partners in crime?” Rab tried, reaching out a hand. This time Erik didn’t flinch away. Instead he adjusted himself so he was in a more comfortable position. He stared at the floorboards as if he was afraid to make eye contact with anyone. 

“I… I’m sorry. I don’t remember anything. I woke up, and everything was dark, and... I had no idea who I was. Or where.” He replied, “I remember my name, and I know there’s something important I have to do, but apart from that…” He suddenly moved forward and looked up, right into Oleander’s eyes. The luminary was fighting hard to hold back tears.

“Look, I know I have no right to ask you this, but… could I tag along with you guys for a while? If you know who I am, It might help me remember something. I promise I’ll pay you back for the food I took! I’ll swab the decks, clean the dishes- anything!”

The way he seemed so desperate to make up for taking just a bit of food from their ship, it made Oleander think that he’d probably been beat up for stealing food before, that’s the best explanation he could think of for why he seemed so full of fear.

“Now, now. There’ll be no need for that, laddie.” Rab spoke, stepping forward, “You stick with us- I’m sure your memory will be back soon enough.”

“I hope so…” Oleander mumbled very quietly.

“What do you say darling?” Sylv leaned in close to Oleander, “Shall we forgive our stowaway and welcome him back with open arms?”

Oleander just nodded in response. 

Erik who was standing, bowed in gratitude, “Thank you so much! I promise I won’t get in your way! You won’t regret this!”

Sylvando made a little side joke about how Erik had finally gained some manners, but Oleander hadn’t really heard it. He was busy thinking about what had just happened. He was also trying to hide the fact that tears pricked at the corners of his eyes from Erik. There was no need to make him even more worried.

“I suppose I’ll show Erik to the room while he’ll be staying then, and get him some food...” Hendrik spoke, leaving and gesturing for the other to follow, he could tell Oleander needed some time alone. Once the two left, Rab spoke up.

“Ah, we best be leaving young Oleander alone, no doubt he has some… feelings about all of this.” He left the room and Jade followed, closing the door behind her. That only left Sylv. The man looked at him with an expression of sympathy. He had been the one that helped Oleander and Erik get together after all.

“Honey, are you okay?” Silv asked, Oleander shook his head in response, “Would you like my company?” He nodded, “Alright, meet me in your quarters where it’ll no doubt be more comfortable.” And with that the two of them parted.

Oleander headed up to his room and as soon as he sat down on his bed, he let it all out, wrapping his arms around himself and sobbing. Sylv came in a few minutes later and practically flew to Oleander’s side after closing the door behind him.

“Oh Honey, Oh Darling… It’ll be alright.” He placed a hand gently on Oleander’s back and rubbed gently. Oleander reacted by capturing Sylv in a hug and sobbing into his shoulder, just as he had done with Erik when he saw what was left of his hometown. For once, it seemed that Sylv was speechless. They stayed like that for a while until Oleander pulled away, regaining his composure.

“T-Thanks… I needed that” Oleander finally spoke.

“It’s no problem at all.” He paused for a little while, “Now, will you tell ol’ Sylv what’s going on? I have a few guesses, but I’d like to hear it from you.”

Oleander nodded, leaning back to make himself comfortable, “I… I know I should be happy that Erik is alive and well, bu-”

Sylv cut him off, “Now sweetie, who told you that you had to be happy?”

“N-Nobody…” Oleander replied.

“Then why are you forcing yourself? Of course you’d be upset. You thought the love of your life might be dead, and now here he is, alive, but without any memory of the special bond that you two shared. I’d be upset too, Honey.”

Oleander froze, looking up at Sylv. He’d been so good at guessing exactly what was going on. He supposed that was just like Sylvando, the man was unusually perceptive when it came to matters of romance.

“The look on your face tells me that I’m right.” Sylv replied with a small chuckle, “Don’t worry… We’ll do our best to get his memory back. Until then, you should let him know how much you care.”

Oleander looked away, “but what if I scare him… You saw how afraid he was when we met him. Someone hurt him, that’s the only way I can explain his reaction.” Oleander’s hand that had been resting near Sylvando’s knee, curled into a fist in response. Suddenly, his mother’s words about revenge echoed in his head and sighed, placing that hand flat on the bed instead. A larger but more slender hand covered his.

“Oh… darling…” For a moment it seemed like he didn’t know what to say, “Don’t be discouraged by his fear, Erik has probably lived a hard life since the tree fell, as you guessed. It can’t be easy for him to trust anyone. Maybe now that we’ve welcomed him back, he’ll realize that there’s nothing to fear… but that may take a while…”

Oleander nodded softly, wiping away some more tears that started to fall, “I suppose we’ll see…”

“You gonna be okay, sweetie?” Sylv asked softly.

“Yeah… Thanks Sylv” Oleander looked up at the other, remnants of tears still in his eyes, but a soft smile on his face.

“It’s no problem.” Sylvando stood from the bed, but didn’t leave just yet, “Would you like me to send Erik in, so you can talk to him?”

Oleander didn’t answer for a long time, and when he did, he just shook his head. 

“Alright then, I suppose I’ll take my leave.” Sylvando made his exit from the room and left the luminary there, alone.


	2. Reconnecting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oleander and Erik try to reconnect with each other.

It wasn’t until late at night that Oleander decided to venture out of his room. He just couldn’t sleep. After making a pit stop in the kitchen area for some dinner, someone had thoughtfully saved him some, he went up on deck. Dave was there, navigating the Salty Stallion tirelessly as always, but his gaze was attracted to the silhouette visible in the darkness. He was leaning slightly over the railing of the ship, looking up at the stars.

The Luminary approached slowly, still wincing when Erik noticed him and flinched.

“S-Sorry.” He said quietly, like the atmosphere shouldn’t be broken by anything more than a whisper, “I’m guessing you can’t sleep either.”

Erik shook his head, “N-No… I can try some more if you r-really want me to. We have a long day ahead of us, right?”

Oleander nodded, “But it’s okay, I can’t sleep either… there’s too much running through my head.”

“About me….” It wasn’t a question. 

Oleander was surprised that Erik picked up on it at first and then gave a small nod.

“Yeah… I figured.” Erik looked up at the stars once again, “I know I’m supposed to be someone… important to you. Earlier today when we met, and I said I didn’t remember you… the look on your face… hurt.” He placed his hand lightly on his chest, “It hurt for some reason that I can’t explain… because I don’t know.” He looked to Oleander, meeting his gaze, “What was I to you?”

The Luminary took a deep breath and let it out slowly before responding, “You were my world. I still love you.”

Erik’s expression turned to a puzzled one, “I don’t remember what love is. I don’t even think I’d even be able to recognize it if I felt it. Tell me, did I... love you back?”

Tears brimmed at the edges of Oleander’s eyes as he simply nodded in response. 

“Oh… maybe that’s what this constant ache in my chest is… like… I’m missing something.” He gave a small chuckle, looking down into the water, at his own distant reflection. His hand dropped from his chest. “I don’t even know who I am, or where I came from. Anything the others have tried to tell me about my own life… well those details just seem so… foreign.” Erik made a frustrated noise, “How do I even know I’m missing something?” 

The Luminary placed a hand lightly on Erik’s shoulder, glad that he didn’t flinch away this time, “I don’t know, but just take it easy, okay?” The tears fell, rolling slowly down his cheeks, “We don’t have to figure everything out right this moment. I’m just happy that you’re alive.”

Erik looked back at Oleander, a small smile forming on his face, but it disappeared as soon as he saw tears, “You’re… crying.” He reached a hand out and gently brushed away one of the tears. It was a soft, intimate touch and Erik didn’t know where it came from. 

Oleander laughed lightly, “Erik, if there’s one thing you have to remember about me, It’s that I cry all the time. Not all of them are because I’m sad.”

“I see… are these… happy tears?”

They were sad at first, but there was no reason to tell Erik that. Oleander nodded, “I’m glad that you feel the same ache that I do. It makes me believe that our love isn’t truly lost, and can someday be rekindled. For now, just stick with us.” 

“Don’t worry, I plan too. Your crew has shown me more kindness than I’ve ever had… as far as I can remember at least.”

“Well that’s because they all care about you… except maybe Hendrik. He’s new though, He’ll warm up to you.”

Erik nodded, turning his gaze to the stars, thinking for a bit, “Tell me… Who are they… and what do they mean to me?”

Oleander turned his gaze to the sky too, “Well… first there’s Serena and Veronica, the twin mages. They’re both currently missing at the moment… the only two party members of ours that haven’t come back yet. I think you and Serena became good friends over the course of our adventures, and Veronica… well the two of you bickered and fought all the time.”

“So… we hated each other..”

“Not exactly. I think she was like your little sister, but not actually your sister. The two of you just bickered so much that it reminded us of how siblings act. But when things got serious, you always had her back, and she always had yours.” Oleander felt a pang of longing to see the twins again. He missed Veronica’s antics and Serena’s calm and gentle nature.

“That… sounds nice.”

“Mmhmm… Sylvando was the next person that we met. He’s the guy with short black hair that always dresses in colorful clothing.”

“Ah, him… he seemed really concerned about me too.”

“Yeah, Sylvando just wanted to make sure that you were okay. I don’t know what he would be considered to you, probably another close friend, but to all of us Sylv is a shining light even in dark times like these. He’s got a knack for figuring out just how other people are feeling and he tries his best to help them. You didn’t like him at first, but you warmed up to him. He’s also the one that owns this boat that we’re all on. It’s called the Salty Stallion.”

“Sounds like we’re lucky to call him our friend then.”

“Yeah, Sylv was the one that helped us get together in the first place.”

Erik was surprised by that statement, “O-oh? I didn’t know that.”

“Of course you didn’t.” The Luminary’s words didn’t sound disappointed or sad, but merely just a statement of fact, “Anyway, the next people we ran into were Rab and Jade. First thing you should know, that we didn’t find out till later, is that Rab is my grandfather, and the king of the town I was born in, Dundrasil, which is now reduced to ruins.”

Erik suddenly placed his hand on his heart again, looking at the Luminary, “There it is again, another feeling, this one different than the ache I feel. It’s more like… a deep sadness. I don’t know why…”

Oleander met his gaze, “Maybe you remember what it was like stepping foot into Dundrasil for the first time and seeing it in such a ruined state. I sure do…”

“That could be it…” He was quiet for a few moments, deep in concentration, looking down at his hand over his heart. Then he sighed and shook his head, looking back to Oleander, “Just.. continue with what you were telling me. What’s Rab like.”

Oleander looked a little concerned, but did as Erik asked, “Grandfather Rab is strong and stubborn, but also soft and good natured. He treats mostly everyone in the group like his grandkids, unless someone doesn’t want him to. You weren’t too keen on it at least. Though, when we told him that we were in love, he stopped anyway. After that, he treated you like the boyfriend of his grandson, which is what you were at the time.”

Erik smiled at that, “Does that mean I fell in love with a prince?”

“Technically, yes.” Oleander replied with a nod, “but you also fell in love with a plain old farmboy from Cobblestone. I was raised there my whole life, after Dundrasil fell.”

He frowned suddenly, turning away from the Luminary, “You know, all this talk about us is only making the ache worse. Can we just move onto the next person?”  
“Of course… I- I didn’t mean it.”

“I know you didn’t… just…” He sighed, “You mentioned a ‘Jade’... tell me about her.”

“...Alright. We met Jade alongside Rab while fighting in a tournament together. Afterward, we found out that she’s the long lost princess of Heliodor. In the short time she knew me before we were separated, she thought of me as a brother. Now that we’ve met again, we’ve agreed to adopt each other as siblings. She pretty much just treats you like the boyfriend of her brother. Besides the fact that she kicked your butt in the tournament, I’d say you two have a pretty good relationship.“

“Wait, she ‘kicked my butt’? Am I really that wimpy?” 

“Nope, you’re an excellent fighter, Erik. It’s just that she happened to be better than you at that time.” 

“Oh… well It’s not like I can remember how I used to fight. Seems like I won’t be much help to you in battle.”

“Hey, that’s alright. You can recover at your own pace, okay?”

Erik simply nodded as his response, but it seemed like he was somewhere else.

Oleander simply continued with the final party member, “Lastly, there’s Hendrik. He’s the big guy with purple hair that had the yellow turtleneck on.”

“Oh, I remember him. He showed me around the boat, made sure I got something to eat, and took me to my room. He seemed nice.”

“Well he wasn’t always that way, at least not to us. I know I said that Hendrik was new, but that’s not exactly the truth. For a long time, he was an enemy of ours. He followed the orders of the King of Heliodor, who had been corrupted by Mordegon.”

“This.. is all hard to follow. Who is Mordegon?”

“He’s responsible for the state of the world you see now. He brought down the world tree. Mordegon is the entity that we’re supposed to defeat to bring peace to the world. Though, at this moment, we’re headed to Arboria to ask about something we think might be handy in the fight against him.”

Erik was quiet for a while as he tried to process all this. He wasn’t even going to ask about Arboria. After a little while of waiting for Erik to say something, Oleander just decided to continue.  
“Anyway, the Lord of Shadows had Hendrik wrapped around his finger by manipulating the loyalty he had to his king. Hendrik broke free before the world fell to ruin, though, and he spent his time trying to save the people from it. He took a lot of survivors to a refuge that he called ‘The Last Bastion’ “ 

The way Oleander talked about Hendrik, admiration was clear in his voice. It almost made Erik a little… jealous? Why?

“Hendrik was quiet at first, but after we brought the light back to the world together… well, he started to warm up to me. He says he’s my-” He cleared his throat, imitating Hendrik’s deep voice, “-sword, shield, and unswerving compainion.” His voice went back to normal, “It was nice having someone look after me in those times when I didn’t have anyone, and I considered the possibility that everyone I cared about could have died when the world tree went down.”

“Is… that why you looked so relieved when you first saw me?” Erik asked, then shook his head, “Oh, I’m asking too many questions, aren’t I? Sorry…” 

“It’s alright. That’s exactly why I looked so relieved.”

Erik nodded, then something caught his eye. Sunlight was just barely peeking over the horizon. It was already morning. The Luminary followed his gaze and gasped.

“It’s morning already? I suppose that’s our cue to go to bed.”

“Yeah… I suppose so.”

“Erik, I’m glad we could talk like this.”

“… me too. I’m sorry if I caused problems by asking about too much.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m glad you kept asking questions, Even though you didn’t remember anything, now you know about some of our friends… and about me.”

Erik nodded, “Alright well, I’m turning in for the day.” He moved away from the railing, giving Oleander a small wave.

“I think I’ll do the same.”

“Night”

“Goodnight”

And with that, Oleander watched Erik leave. He stayed on deck for a few moments, watching the sun come up, before heading below deck. Sylv was already up and making breakfast. Considering how things usually went, he’ll soon switch with Dave so the other can get some sleep, so he’ll be steering the ship for the rest of the day, or until they reached their destination, whichever came first. 

Oleander stopped, for only a moment, to let Sylv know that he couldn’t sleep and had been on the deck all night, and he was finally going to catch up on his sleep. He stressed that he didn’t want him or Erik disturbed. Sylv looked like he was about to say something else, but instead just nodded and replied that Oleander can count on him.

With a small smile, the Luminary waved goodnight to Sylv and headed to his room to get some sleep.


End file.
